Who answers users' questions on this site? Is there any way to tell the difference between a student and a teacher answering my question?

Question

blues · Answer

No, at least not formally.

That students and teachers are all classified the same way on OpenStudy is one of the key features of the site. It is designed to help students start teaching others and help teachers study how students learn and become better. That said, sometimes you can get a feel for what sort of person is answering questions by the intellectual level and quality of the answer.

shadowfiend · Answer

The only relative indicator is that number in the bottom right corner of a user's avatar, dubbed the SmartScore. It indicates how effectively a user has been helping and working with others (imperfections aside).

anonymous · Answer

Even better than that, Jessica, you can hover your mouse over a person's name, and it will show their smartscore, plus 3 other scores, Teamwork, Problem Solving, and Engagement.

This can help you get a little more insight into what the person does on the site. For example, I mostly help people rather than ask questions, so my Problem Solving score is higher than my Engagement score.